


flower crown

by aseroxyc



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Cross-Posted on Wattpad, Flower Crowns, Fluff, Kissing, M/M, Past Character Death, Yang Jeongin | I.N is a Sweetheart, hyunjin is precious, jeongin is adorable, past hyunsung, protect him, protect him too, they're both whipped
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-30
Updated: 2019-10-30
Packaged: 2021-01-13 04:50:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,239
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21238451
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aseroxyc/pseuds/aseroxyc
Summary: In which Hwang Hyunjin finds a new love after losing his first one.





	flower crown

Hyunjin sighs softly, watching out of the window through tired, half-lidded eyes. The bright evening sun is burning his eyes, but he doesn't look away. He carefully places his right hand over the piano keys, gently pressing down his index finger, and the old piano lets out a quiet sound, echoing around the empty hall.

The male gently presses the keys with his slender fingers, playing a soft tune that would be stuck in his brain and heart forever.

Emptiness. That's what the tune reminds him off. The emptiness of his heart, the emptiness of his mind and the emptiness of his life.

Hyunjin takes his hand away from the keys, letting it fall to his lap as he takes a deep breath. The last rays of sunlight are flooding into the room through the large windows, painting the whole room in different shades of yellow and orange.

But even that isn't enough to wash away the darkness he holds in his heart.

The image of deep blue hair and gummy smile flashes in his mind, and he feels a piercing pain in his heart.

Jisung was beautiful. Inside and out.

He entered Hyunjin's life like a flash of light one Saturday night. They were nothing but two young teenagers back then. Jisung was an innocent boy with stars in his eyes, had no idea of how cruel the world can be. Hyunjin was a broken boy with hatred in his heart, already scars on his soul from the world. 

Jisung saved him. He filled the emptiness in Hyunjin's heart, the emptiness that his father gave to his mother by leaving her, a vulnerable sixteen-year-old girl to raise a child alone. The emptiness his mother passed on to him when she slit her wrists and died peacefully in her own bed while Hyunjin was at school.

The emptiness that Jisung gave to him again a year ago.

Jisung left his life just as quickly as he entered.

Hyunjin remembers every single second of it.

He remembers the smile Jisung had on his face, the amount of love and adoration in his gaze just a second before another car hit theirs on full speed.

He remembers the pain he felt when he woke up. He felt blood dripping from his mouth, and he felt like someone had stabbed his body thousands of times.

He remembers the pain in his heart when he finally gathered the strength to move his head to look next to him and saw Jisung. His beautiful, perfect Jisung, who laid there like a ragdoll, _not breathing_.

Hyunjin screamed. He tried to touch Jisung, but his body didn't move an inch. He could only stare at him, repeating the same thing over and over again with tears streaming down his cheeks. "_Baby please, open your eyes..._"

When he was rushed to a hospital, he kept screaming Jisung's name in the ambulance. He still remembers everything he said, how he tried to push the paramedics away like they were his worst enemies.

"_No! Let me go, Jisung needs me! My Jisungie needs me, I can't leave him! He is afraid of being alone, I promised him I would never leave him!_"

His words were ignored.

It continued in the hospital as well. People stared at him like he was insane, and Hyunjin almost could hear them thinking: _What is he doing here? He should be in a mental hospital!_

But Hyunjin didn't care. He kept screaming and shouting until he lost consciousness.

Now, a year later, the pain hasn't gone anywhere. The only comfort Hyunjin has is that song he made for Jisung. And again, he finds his fingers playing it, gently sliding over the piano keys.

Sometimes Hyunjin wonders if he should just do the same as his mother did.

If he should just grab a knife and cut his wrists open and watch them bleed until his eyes close, and never open again. 

But he is too scared. He is terrified of the thought of dying. He knows that even if he grabbed a knife, he wouldn't be able to go through with it.

The only thing he does is to play that song over and over again until his hands are aching, thinking the same thing: why couldn't he die instead of Jisung? Jisung didn't deserve to die. Hyunjin did. So why the fuck did it have to be Jisung?

Hyunjin clenches his hands in tight fists, gritting his teeth as he feels tears begin to fall down his cheeks.

✧

Yang Jeongin steps into his life quickly, just like Jisung.

Hyunjin is walking. He is surrounded by flowers, a soft breeze washing over him, and Hyunjin sighs softly.

This is one of the only places that makes him feel safe. The field where he and Jisung used to go every single weekend to watch the sunset.

And suddenly, he sees it.

A boy. A beautiful boy, sitting on the ground, surrounded by flowers as his fingers skillfully weave together a flower crown. And he is singing. Hyunjin can only watch and listen in shock. The boy sounds like an angel as the words flow softly out of his mouth, a small smile on his lips.

Hyunjin doesn't know why, but he starts crying when he listens to the soft singing. Tears flow down his cheeks, and he gasps. The boy stops singing and turns his head towards Hyunjin, his eyes wide with surprise and his cheeks burning. The look of embarrassment quickly melts to worry when he sees Hyunjin's tearful eyes.

"Oh- Hey, is everything okay?"

The boy carefully gets up, never letting go of the flower crown as he hurries over to Hyunjin.

Hyunjin can only stare.

Beautiful eyes, shining with hope and life. Soft, sun-kissed skin. Angelic voice. He closes his eyes, and the image of Jisung flashes in his mind again.

Then, he feels soft fingertips on his arm. He opens his eyes again, and he sees the boy standing in front of him. He is looking up at Hyunjin in concern, his brows slightly furrowed and the corners of his lips are turned down, and Hyunjin can only think of how much he already misses that smile.

"Hello?" The boy asks, waving his hand in front of Hyunjin, and the taller flinches, finally coming back to reality.

"I-I....." He begins, but he can't form any words.

The boy tilts his head in confusion, and Hyunjin swallows. 

"Are you okay? Are you hurt or something?" The boy asks again, now taking another step closer to Hyunjin. The taller takes a deep breath. "N-no, I'm okay, I..... I don't know."

The boy hums, letting his hand fall to his side. And then he smiles. Hyunjin's eyes widen, and he feels his heartbeat quicken. No. This isn't happening. 

"I'm Yang Jeongin. What's your name?"

"I-I'm Hyunjin. Hwang Hyunjin."

"Well, Hyunjin, I'm sorry you had to hear my terrible singing," he laughs, his cheeks burning again and Hyunjin frowns. "Terrible? I..... Your singing was good."

The boy, Jeongin, smiles shyly, glancing up at Hyunjin through his dark lashes. "R-really?" Hyunjin nods, and Jeongin beams. "Ah, thank you!" He exclaims, lifting up his other hand where he is still holding the flower crown.

"I am making flower crowns! Do you want to join me?"

Hyunjin doesn't know why, but he just nods.

Jeongin grabs his hand and leads him over to where he sat before, and Hyunjin follows him like a lost puppy, his eyes never leaving the smaller male's beautiful face.

Jeongin sits down once again, and Hyunjin sits next to him. They don't speak, the taller just watches as the blonde continues making the flower crown with a happy smile. The way his fingers are working on the crown is hypnotic in a way; Jeongin is definitely an expert at it. Hyunjin didn't even know people made those anymore, except for those parents who want to give their little princesses a small surprise on a warm summer day.

"How often do you make these?" Hyunjin asks suddenly, surprising not only Jeongin, but himself as well.

Jeongin gives him a small, soft smile, but then focuses on the crown again.

"As often as I can. It's... I lost a friend of mine some time ago. We hadn't talked in three years because he moved to Australia when I was sixteen and his parents told him not to keep in contact with me, I don't know why though. His parents never liked me, I guess. But we used to make these all the time," Jeongin explains, and Hyunjin notices the sadness and longing he holds in his eyes even though he is smiling. "The first time we made it was for his dog. I was five and he was nine years old. It was this big and scary looking german shepherd. Everyone was scared of him. We found it funny, seeing this scary guard dog wearing a flower crown, you know?" Jeongin giggles softly, and Hyunjin's lips turn into a small smile.

"Then we made ones for each other as well as a token of our friendship. Then we kept making new ones because they obviously didn't look pretty for a long time." Jeongin finally looks up from the crown and smiles at Hyunjin. 

"I only found out about his death a week ago. I never attended the funeral, I was never there for him during the past few years and his parents hated me more than anything so I understand why I was never informed, I guess... But I want to do something to remember him. I come here every evening to watch the sunset and make a flower crown if it's not raining."

Hyunjin just nods, his eyes moving from Jeongin towards the sunset. He doesn't know what to say, and he is glad Jeongin only wanted him to listen anyway.

The taller flinches when he feel something on his head and he turns his head to face Jeongin. The blonde has bright smile on his lips, brighter than the evening sun disappearing behind the horizon. Hyunjin's heart skips a beat. And then he realizes that there's a flower crown on his head.

"Why did you...?"

Jeongin only smiles softly as a response, looking up at him through his thick lashes. The sunset is reflecting from his brown eyes, and his peachy blonde hair is turning orange by each passing second as the sun goes down. Jeongin looks absolutely breath-taking.

"You look like a prince from those old stories my mother used to tell me when I was a kid. And every prince needs his crown."

Hyunjin doesn't know how to react, but he is goddamn sure his face is redder than a tomato. Jeongin lets out a giggle but doesn't say anything, just turns around and starts picking more flowers.

Hyunjin doesn't know what takes over him, but he grabs a yellow flower from next to him, small and beautiful. He reaches his hands towards Jeongin, and he gently places the flower behind the smaller boy's ear. Jeongin whips his head around to look at him in surprise, and Hyunjin can only give him a small smile as a response, which is quickly returned by Jeongin.

✧

"Do you think there's life on other planets?"

Hyunjin looks next to him to see Jeongin lying there, his eyes focused on the starry sky above them and his brows slightly furrowed in thought. There's a flower crown on Hyunjin's head again, and there's a beautiful, red flower resting behind the younger boy's ear.

The older follows his gaze and looks up, humming quietly. "I do. I actually think it's impossible that there's no planets like Earth existing. There must be life somewhere else as well."

"Have you ever thought about what it would be like on other planets, hyung?"

Hyunjin's lips curl into a small smile at the younger boy's curiosity. It's been two weeks since they met, and if there's something Hyunjin has learned from Jeongin, it's that he loves to ask questions.

"A little, I guess. Have you?" 

"No. I like it here. What if there is no ice cream on other planets? That would suck. Oh my god hyung, how do they survive without ice gream in there?" Jeongin looks so worried, his eyes wide and his lips turned downwards.

"Don't worry Jeongin-ah, I'm sure they have something similar to ice cream there," Hyunjin says with a reassuring smile, and that seems to calm Jeongin down a little. "I hope they do!"

They smile at each other, and Hyunjin feels his heart nearly burst in his chest: he doesn't understand the beauty of the boy beside him. Again Hyunjin can't help but adore everything about him. His beautiful eyes which disappear behind his bright smile every time their eyes meet, the way he talks about the world as if he's lived thousands of lives, the way he looks at the world with the innocence of a child, absolutely everything about him.

"Hyung?"

"Yeah?"

There's a shy smile on Jeongin's face as he turns on his side, facing Hyunjin. "What's your happiest memory...? You don't talk about your past, I'm curious."

Hyunjin stares at him before he lifts his gaze up to the skies again.

His happiest memory.

The image of him and Jisung alone in a dirty motel room, under the covers, both of their hair a mess and lazily kissing, still half asleep as they mumble incoherent words into each other's mouth and their first 'I love you's slip from their lips without a second thought. Hyunjin had never been as happy as he was that Saturday morning, and even to this day he is sure he will never experience happiness like that again. 

But instead of sharing his happiest moment with Jeongin, he digs out another happy memory, a slight smile on his lips as he recalls it. 

"I think I was around ten at the time," He begins, and Jeongin subconsciously moves closer to him, his eyes shining like the stars above them. "It was my birthday. My mother picked me up from school and started driving. I asked where we were going, but she wouldn't tell me, she just smiled so wide at me and pushed a full lunchbox into my hands and told me to eat. Because it was going to be a long drive."

Hyunjin doesn't notice his own smile growing by every word and Jeongin staring at him like he's the most beautiful thing on the planet.

"I fell asleep in the car after two hours. It was dark when she woke me up and told me we were there. We were literally in the middle of nowhere, and I asked her where we were again, but obviously she just smiled at me again. We got out of the car and my mom took a bag from the backseat. Then I saw it. A huge tree, I think it was a fir tree, I'm not sure anymore. But it was tall. And then she told me to climb it. And I did. I climbed all the way to the top, and my mom followed me and stopped to sit a few branches below me. It was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. I saw everything, the city, the forest around us... Then I went to sit next to her and she wished me happy birthday and apologized... For not having any money to by me what she knew I wanted, which I think were a new bike or a phone, I'm not sure anymore about that either. But I didn't care, to me it was the greatest gift ever."

Hyunjin's smile slowly started to fade as the older remembered the gift his mother gave him on his next birthday. Jeongin's own, wide smile also disappeared when Hyunjin frowned. "What's wrong?"

"It was the last birthday I ever got to spend with her. When I turned eleven, I came home to her lying dead on her bed and her wrists cut open."

Jeongin's eyes widen in shock and tears quickly form in his chocolate eyes. "Oh my god hyung, I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have asked-"

"No, it's okay."

They stay in silence after that, Jeongin rolling on his back again as they stare at the stars together. Subconsciously, their arms link and so do their fingers as they slowly fall asleep under the stars.

✧

Weeks pass. Then the weeks turn into months, and then months turns into a year.

Every evening passes with the two of them together, if not at the field watching the sunset and the stars then they find themselves on Jeongin's living room floor with their limbs tangled together and quiet words leaving their lips, surrounded by blankets and pillows. And Hyunjin knows he is falling in love with the literal sunshine in his arms. Every smile, every hushed word, every time their eyes meet, Hyunjin feels himself fall deeper and deeper, and he knows very well he's not the only one, he can see it in Jeongin's eyes.

And suddenly his world isn't dark and miserable anymore.

And he hates it. He hates the fact that he broke his own unspoken promise to Jisung, that he would never, ever fall in love with another person.

He knows Jisung would have wanted him to move on. But he can't help the painful feeling in his chest he gets every time he looks at Jeongin and thinks: I love him so much. And he can't help the way his heart starts beating faster when Jeongin's thumb brushes his lower lip right before their lips meet for the first time. He can't help the feeling he gets when Jeongin spills those three words to him one night when they're lying together on Hyunjin's couch, raindrops running down against the window and the faint roaring of the thunder echoing in the distance.

_I love you._

Hyunjin doesn't say it back, and the feeling of Jeongin slowly breaking in his arms breaks his own heart.

He can't say it. He can't do that to Jisung.

So he just sits up and tells Jeongin that he needs to go to the bathroom, ignoring the tears silently falling down Jeongin's face as he walks away.

The guilt starts eating him away when Jeongin stops smiling every time they're together. It's killing him, how Jeongin's eyes are shining with the unshed tears and he just silently makes the flower crowns and lets Hyunjin do the talking. Sometimes the older catches Jeongin wiping the tears away before giving Hyunjin a small smile and pretending everything is okay. And that smile doesn't hold a single drop of the happiness he used to have all the time.

He made Jeongin like this, he turned the happy and that smiling Jeongin into a broken boy with tears in his eyes and a broken heart.

And it hurts him how Jeongin starts to pretend that he's fine and that his feelings for Hyunjin never existed. 

✧

Hyunjin sniffles as he holds the bouquet of deep blue roses close to his chest. He shivers slightly as the light rain hits his skin and makes his hair stick to his forehead. The whole graveyard is quiet, the only person there besides Hyunjin being an old lady quietly standing next to him, a sad smile on her face as they stare at the same grave.

"Haven't seen you in a while, Jin," the lady speaks and Hyunjin hums. "I couldn't bring myself to come here earlier."

The lady smiles sadly again. "It's hard to accept the fact that my grandson is gone, even after two years. I still wait for him to walk down the stairs every morning when I'm cooking breakfast," she chuckles and Hyunjin smiles slightly. "And I still expect him to be right there beside me when I wake up."

They sigh in unison and Hyunjin finally crouches down to set the roses on the grave before carefully backing up next to the lady again. "I miss him," he speaks quietly after a moment of silence and she hums in agreement, her hand coming to comfortingly rub Hyunjin's back. "Don't we all?"

"He shouldn't have died. It's unfair."

"Life is unfair, Hyunjin. You know that better than anyone. Jisung wouldn't have wanted you to dwell on it. He had a hard life, even though he was always happy and smiling. You made it all better for him, Hyunjin. He loved you more than anything."

"I know," Hyunjin says, feeling the tears of anger and frustration starting to roll down his cheeks again and his whole body shakes. "And I love him too, that's why it hurts so much even after two years."

"I know it does."

Silence again. Hyunjin takes a deep, shaky breath, lifting his gaze towards the gray sky.

"I met someone a year ago," Hyunjin says quietly, suddenly feeling the need to pour everything out to the old lady that was like the mother he lost in the age of eleven. She looks at him and nods encouragingly, waiting for him to continue.

"His name is Jeongin. He's amazing and... We're in love," Hyunjin sniffles, expecting her to start yelling at him for falling for someone else besides her grandson. Instead he gets a friendly smile in response. "Are you two dating?" She asks, and Hyunjin shakes his head slightly. "No, we aren't. I- It feels wrong. I can't tell him how I feel."

"But he has told you he loves you?" 

Hyunjin nods in response, snifflings as he wipes his cheeks.

The lady sighs deeply, rubbing circles on Hyunjin's back. "Hwang Hyunjin, you know this is what Jisung would have wanted you to do. To keep on living, to fall in love, to be happy without him. That's all he would want, even if he isn't the reason you smile. Don't keep the boy waiting, or you'll end up losing him and the chance to tell him about your feelings. Go to Jeongin, tell him that you love him, make him happy like you made Jisung happy," she says, and Hyunjin breaks down in loud sobs again.

She pulls him into a gentle hug, and Hyunjin weakly hugs him back as he lets the woman's words sink into his heart, where he would keep them forever.

"Good luck Hyunjin," she says softly as she puts her hands on the boy's shoulders, looking at him with the smile of a loving mother, and Hyunjin smiles back, a stray tear rolling down his cheek. "Thank you, Eunjung," he whispers, his voice still shaky.

Eunjung smiles and turns around, and Hyunjin watches as the old lady makes her way towards the entrance of the graveyard, slowly and carefully.

Hyunjin looks up as he hears the faint roar of thunder, and the rain starts hitting his face. The male closes his eyes and breathes in deeply, letting the raindrops soak him completely as he stands there, Eunjung's words still clear in his mind.

"I'm sorry I haven't come here earlier, Jisung," He whispers as he looks at the grave, feeling his heart shatter a little in his chest. Oh, how he still wishes Jisung was there with him. "I miss you. And I'm sorry I fell for someone else. I know that's what you would have wanted, but I'm sorry. I just want you to know that I'll never forget you. Thank you, for everything. I love you."

He stares at the writings on the gravestone in silence, a sad smile taking over his features. Memories run through his head like a movie, making his eyes tear up once again.

He flinches as his phone starts vibrating in his pocket, and he quickly pulls it out and picks up, not looking at the caller ID. "Yes?"

"_Jinnie! Where are you?_"

Hyunjin smiles as he recognizes Jeongin's worried voice. His heart skips a beat, and he feels happiness start growing inside of him, just like the need to have Jeongin in his arms immediately.

"I'm at the graveyard," he says and Jeongin falls silent. "_Oh, I'm sorry Jinnie. Take your time-_"

"No, it's okay, Jeongin. I was just about to leave. Can I come over? I really want to be with you right now," he whispers the last part, but Jeongin hears it, loud and clear. The younger is taken aback, not replying for a moment. But when he finally does, Hyunjin can hear the smile in the younger boy's soft voice. "_Of course, Jinnie. I really want you here too, I miss you._"

"Cute. Do you need something from the store?"

"_No- oh! Chocolate!_"

Hyunjin laughs and shakes his head as he sends a last smile towards Jisung's grave, his feet carrying him away from the graveyard, towards the boy he loves. "You and your chocolate. I'll be there in forty minutes or so, okay?"

"_Forty? Why so long-_" 

"Hey, don't question me. I'll be there soon enough. There's something I have to do before I come."

"Okay Jinnie, see you soon."

Hyunjin sighs as he hangs up. This is it, he needs to tell Jeongin. He made the boy he loves wait for him to come to his senses and finally realize they should have been together for months.

✧

Hyunjin takes a deep breath as he stands in front of Jeongin's door, leaning his forehead against it. His heart is beating fast against his ribcage. In his right hand, he is carefully holding a flower crown made of yellow and pink flowers. It's not as beautiful as he wanted it to be, but after all, he hasn't been doing them all his life like Jeongin.

He collects his every bit of strength and straightens his back, knocking on the door.

Jeongin opens the door a second after Hyunjin has knocked, and he has a nervous and shy smile on his face. "Hi- Is that a flower crown?"

"Hi. And yes, it is," Hyunjin replies with a smile as Jeongin stares at the crown in curiosity, and he steps inside the apartment. Jeongin closes the door behind him, and Hyunjin kicks off his shoes and takes off his jacket. The younger leans against the door with his head slightly tilted. "Did you bring my chocolate?"

Hyunjin laughs. "Of course. Here," he says and fishes the chocolate bar out of the pocket of his jacket, and Jeongin squeals. "Thank you, Jinnie," he says as he takes it, pushing himself away from the door and walking to the kitchen, Hyunjin following him. "I was thinking about watching a movie. What do you think?"

Hyunjin stops by the doorframe and leans against it, watching as Jeongin takes two glasses from the cupboard and then rummages through the fridge. "Yeah, we can watch the movie. But first... I have something I want to talk to you about. It's important."

Jeongin peeks at him from behind the fridge door before closing it. The younger crosses his arms, leaning against the kitchen counter, a curious and slightly nervous look on his face. "Okay. What is it?"

Hyunjin takes a deep breath once again. He walks closer to Jeongin, the younger staring at him curiously with his beautiful and still sad eyes. They stare at each other in silence before Hyunjin carefully and delicately lifts his hands, the flower crown resting on his palms. Jeongin blinks as Hyunjin sets the crown on his head.

Jeongin has a small, shy smile on his lips as he brings his hands up and feels the petals and leaves with his fingers. "Did you just make this?"

Hyunjin laughs, nodding. "I did. Is it good?"

Jeongin smiles. "Of course it is. I didn't think you were capable of making flower crowns this beautiful," he says with a teasing glint in his eye and Hyunjin laughs again. "Wow, friendly."

"I'm just kidding, Jinnie. I love it. Thank you," Jeongin giggles, and Hyunjin feels a warmth go through his whole body. Finally, his Jeongin is smiling and laughing. But the feeling doesn't last long, because the terrible feeling of guilt starts eating him away again.

He clears his throat and he carefully reaches for Jeongin's hands, bringing them up and holding them gently. He smiles when Jeongin's cheeks start turning red, and the younger struggles to keep eye contact. "Innie, I have something I need to tell you. Listen carefully, okay?"

The younger just nods in response, clearly too flustered to even say anything. So, Hyunjin takes a deep breath, preparing to finally tell Jeongin everything.

"Four years ago I met someone," Hyunjin begins, and Jeongin tilts his head, the flustered look quickly changing to curiosity again.

"His name was Han Jisung. And we fell in love." Hyunjin's voice starts fading, and a small, worried frown finds it's way to Jeongin's face as Hyunjin squeezes his hands. "He died two years ago."

Jeongin's eyes widen and the younger watches helplessly as Hyunjin's eyes tear up. "Oh Jinnie-"

"No, just listen. I'm not finished," Hyunjin says and takes a deep breath, giving Jeongin a reassuring smile, to tell him that he's okay. Because he really is, for the first time in years.

"After what happened to Jisung, I've been afraid of everything. Myself. Life," Hyunjin says softly and squeezes Jeongin's hands tighter, holding onto them for dear life. "...Falling in love."

Jeongin looks at him and swallows, shyly looking up at Hyunjin, and Hyunjin can see the confusion, fear, anxiety and excitement in the younger male's eyes as he waits for Hyunjin to continue.

"But not anymore. I love you, Jeongin. And I'm sorry for not telling you sooner, I'm sorry for being such a coward. I want you to know that I'm yours, if you'll still have me. And if you don't, I understand-"

The rest of the sentence is cut off when Jeongin, with one of the widest smiles ever, throws himself at Hyunjin, his arms tightly around Hyunjin's neck. The older stumbles back in surprise as he catches Jeongin in his arms. He laughs and he feels his heart skip a beat when it sinks in. Jeongin still loves him.

"Of course I'll have you, you idiot. I love you," Jeongin sniffles, "Always. And I'm sorry you had to go through all that."

"It's not your fault, don't be sorry. I'm sorry for not realizing this sooner," Hyunjin whispers, slightly pulling away to examine Jeongin's face. His fingers caress the younger's soft cheeks that are now stained with tears of pure happiness. They are both smiling as Hyunjin leans in, still cradling Jeongin's face as their lips meet.

It's not the first time, but the way Hyunjin's heart beats rapidly in his chest and how he gets butterflies in his stomach, it feels like the very first time.

The kiss is short, just a light, soft brush of their lips against each other before they pull away.

"Yang Jeongin, will you be my boyfriend?" Hyunjin asks with a wide smile as Jeongin giggles. "Yes, Hyunjin," he says and finally, as they stand there in Jeongin's kitchen and hold onto each other, Hyunjin knows he has found a new home and a new life, and now he has everything he will ever need, and that is Yang Jeongin. The boy with a smile that is brighter than the sun, the boy who managed to lead Hyunjin out of the darkness, the boy who saved him.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone. I was supposed to post this fic days ago, but I forgot due to the sudden news of Woojin leaving Stray Kids.  
I hope you all are okay after the situation with Woojin. As devastating as his departure from Stray Kids is, I really hope you all remember to take care of yourselves.  
Let's all continue to support Stray Kids and Woojin as best as we can, and always remember everything Woojin has done for Stray Kids as their older brother and as their main vocalist. In our hearts, it will always be nine or none, even though Woojin is leaving.  
I will continue including Woojin in my current and future writings. Thank you.


End file.
